When Santa Fe County resurfaced busy Avenida Vista Grande in Eldorado recently, it laid the asphalt a few inches into the shoulder, creating an inch-and-a-half-tall "lip"between the old and new paving.

That's no big deal if you're driving a car.

But the asphalt lip is a hazard for cyclists who like the safety of riding their road bikes on the shoulder instead of in busy car lanes, according to triathlete and teacher Ted Freedman. "I'm on the road a lot training. That's why shoulders are important for me," Freedman said. "We love having shoulders because it keeps us safe. For a cyclist to try and go up that lip with a slim tire is hard. We can easily crash."

The partial repaving into shoulders is a problem on county roads and state highways around the state, cyclists say, and they're pushing for a change.

Resurfacing only heavily traveled vehicle lanes and not shoulders can be a substantial cost savings though, a plus in these economic hard times.

County staff say not resurfacing the whole shoulder saved $300,000 on the 4.8-mile project. "The only portion of the road that needed repaving was the driving section," said James Lujan, director of growth management for the county. "We see DOT do the same with partial resurfacing. It is quite costly to do those shoulders, especially if they are already in good shape."

Lujan and county Public Utilities Division Director Robert Martinez said the agency thought most bicyclists used a bike and pedestrian path in Eldorado and didn't think paving only a portion of the shoulder was an issue at the time. The division can't fix the problem, they said, but it will have the shoulder swept and post "Share the Road" signs.

Freedman said road cyclists often ride on roads rather than bike paths to avoid conflicts with pedestrians or slower cyclists. "We're going 20 miles per hour or faster. It's not safe to ride that fast on those paths," Freedman said. "It's a misconception that those small paths are for road bikers."

New Mexico transportation laws, like many surrounding states, give cyclists the same rights and responsibilities as motorists. But the needs of motorists and cyclists for safe travel are very different. Cyclists have battled for years for more bike-friendly roads. The partial paving is just the latest problem that they say indicates government officials and road designers are more concerned with the bottom line than bicyclist safety.

Diane Albert, an Albuquerque attorney, bike commuter and president of the New Mexico Bicycling Coalition, has had her own experience with partial-paving lips. She crashed on one this year and still had bruised ribs and scabs several weeks later. "I've seen lips where they've repaved three or four times and have lip upon lip," Albert said. "When your tire gets hung up, you immediately get caught and you fall."

State and county road departments tend to be "car centric," Albert said. "They need to be educated that this is not acceptable. People who never get on a bike may not realize how dangerous these things are."

New Mexico Department of Transportation Secretary Gary L.J. Giron has promised to make state roads bicycle and pedestrian safe, in spite of losing millions in budget cuts. "Secretary Giron renewed his commitment in a meeting in July," said Tom Trowbridge, the bicycle, pedestrian and equestrian coordinator for the department. "NMDOT will do its best to factor in the needs of bikes and peds."

Trowbridge acknowledged contractors haven't always resurfaced roads across the shoulders. "We were trying to save money while facing higher asphalt costs," said Trowbridge, who bicycles everywhere and doesn't own a car.

A committee updated the NMDOT's Bicycle-Pedestrian-Equestrian Advisory Plan in January and turned the 79-page document over to the department's administration. Among the committee's central recommendations: Maintain edge-to-edge asphalt overlays and a continuous usable shoulder. Trowbridge said the administration will decide whether the plan becomes official policy.

State law regarding shoulders is confusing. Motorists are not supposed to use road shoulders except in emergencies. But New Mexico law says bicyclists are supposed to ride as far to the right side of the road as possible.

Sen. Peter Wirth, D-Santa Fe, an attorney, said even with budget constraints, it is critical to encourage bicycling, something Gov. Bill Richardson has advocated. Bicycling is healthy for the environment and for people, he said. "I think it is important for DOT to send a strong signal to contractors to follow the policy they've laid out."

"Telling bicyclists to ride on the right side of the road and then putting a drop-off there certainly sends a mixed message. What we don't want is to encourage people to get on bikes and then not give them safe places to ride. All it takes is one person to have a scary experience because the pavement is not done right to make them get off their bikes."

Contact Staci Matlock at 986-3055 or smatlock@sfnewmexican.com.